Water-heater.



1.]. ROHAN.

WATER HEATER.

APPLICATION FILED OCT. 20. 1913.

1 Patented Sept. 26, 1916.

Mfnesaeo fm eflfor a Jamea J RO/Idl? JAMES J. ROHAN, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, ASSIGNOB THE MISSOURI GAS HEATER AND AIEPLIANCE COMPANY, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI, A CORPORATION OF MIS- SOURI.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, JAMES J. ROHAN, a citizen of the United States, residing at the city of St. Louis, State of Missouri, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in ater-Heaters, of which the following is a full, clear, and exactdescription, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, in which- Figure 1 is a vertical section taken through the center'of a water heater of my the principal object of my invention being to construct a comparatively simple, inex pensive heater arranged so as to conduct the incoming water in a direction against or opposite to the direction of movement of the flames and heat through the device and the direction of flow of the outgoing heated water being in the same direction with the passage of the flames and heat through the device, thus providing a water heater which has the maximum degree of efficiency for the reason that practically all of the heat from the burner is absorbed by the water during its passage through the circulating tubes and the headers to which said tubes are connected.

Further objects of my invention are to provide a water heater' which can be produced at comparatively little expense so that it can be used for household purposes, and

which heater is compact and composed of' comparatively small parts, which can be readily assembled or taken apart to facilitate-repairs or renewal of parts.

To the above purposes, my invention consists in certain novel features of construction and arrangement of parts, hereinafter more fully described and claimed.

In the construction of my improved heater I utilize a pair of vertically disposed parallel plates 1 and 2, the same being preferably cast, and each provided respectively with a series of outwardly projecting horizontally disposed webs or flanges 3 and 4:.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patigntgd S 26, 1916.

Application filed October 20, 1913. Seriall No. 796,184.

Positioned against the outer edges of the flanges 3 1s a cover plate 5, thus forming between sa1d flanges 3 a series of compartments 6. A cover plate 7 corresponding to the plate 5 is positioned against and fixed to the outer edges of the flanges 4, thereby forming between said flanges a series of compartments 8.

The flanges 3 of the plate 1 are offset or staggered with relation to the flanges 4 of the plate 2, so that the circulating compartments 6 and 8 are staggered or offset relative to each other, and formed integral with the plate 1 between two of the flanges 3 near the center of said plate is a flange 3- which divides the corresponding compartment into two small compartments 6 and 6. Side plates 9 are fixed in any suitable manner to the side edges of the plates 1, 2, 5,'and 7, thus closing the ends of the compartments 6 and 8, and forming a box-like body for the heater.

, Positioned on top of the body of the heater thus formed is a plate 10 provided in its center with an opening 11, and leading upwardly therefrom is "a waste gas discharge pipe 12. Seated in the plates 1 and 2 are horizontally disposed rows of circulation tubes 13 which establish communication between the chambers 6 and 8. Leading into the upper one of the chambers 8 is a pipe 14 which is adapted to conduct cold water or return water from a heating system to the heater, and leading from the chamber 6 on the opposite side of the heater is a pipe 15 which conveys the heated water to the point of use.

Leading from the chamber 6 immediately above the chamber 6 is a by-pass pipe 16, the lower end of which is connected to the lower one of the chambers 6. The heater thus constructed is arranged on a suitable support 17 and positioned beneath said heater is one or more burners 18.

VVhen the heater is in use and the burners are lighted, the flames and heat thereof pass upward through the device between the rows of. tubes 13 and the comparatively cold water enters the upper end of the heater through pipe 14 and passes across the heater through the tubes 13, and by the arrangement of the webs or flanges 3 and 4, as said water passes from one side of the heater to the. other, it is conducted downward through the heater and its path of travel opposite to the path of travel of the heater and flames from the burners.

The greater portion of the heat from the burners is absorbed by the Water passing through the tubes and chambers in the lower portion of the heater, but a certain amount of the hot gases from the flames of the burners will impinge against the circulating tubes in the upper portion of the heater,

thereby heating to a certain degree the water within the upper tubes, and upper circulating chambers (S and 8. After the incoming water has been conducted part of the way downward through the heater, said water enters the chamber 6 and passes from thence through by-pass pipe 16 to the lowermost one of the chambers ti, and from thence said water passes through the lowermost series of circulating tubes to the opposite side of the heater, and from thence backward and forward and in an upward direction through the lower portion of the heater and finally said water enters the chamber 6*, and passes from thence through pipe 15 to the point of use. During the passage of the water from the lowermost one of the chambers (3 to the chamber (3", said water passes transversely of the heater through the circulatiug tubes, and at the same time it moves upward in the same direction with the path of travel of the flames through the heater so that said water is heated to a comparatively high degree by the time it enters the chamber (3", and from thence into pipe 15.

By my improved construction the water which has been partially heated by the outgoing gases in the upper portion of the heater is caused to circulate backward and torward through the zone of greatest heat from the burners, and thus a rapid circulation of water is set up through the heater, and the water after being heated to a come paratively high degree is delivered to the point of use. I

A water heater of my improved construction is comparatively simple, is composed of comparatively small parts, which can be readily assembled or taken apart, and by my particular arrangement of headers, circulating tubes and bypass tube, I am able to establish a rapid circulation of water through the device, and heat said water to a com.

heater can be made and substituted. for those herein shown and described, without departing from the spirit of my invention, the scope of which is set forth in the appended claim.

I claim:

In a water heater, a pair of headers spaced apart, each header comprising an inner all, a removable outer wall and a series of partit ons integral with said inner Wall and dihiding the space between said walls into circulating chambers, separate side walls rigidly fixed to said headers, the end portions of which side walls form end walls for the circulating chambers, circulating tubes, the ends of which are seated in the inner walls of the headers to provide communication between the circulating chambers, an exteriorly arranged by-pass pipe leading from one of the intermediate chambers to one of the lowermost chambers, an inlet pipe connected to one of the uppermost chambers, and an outlet pipe connected to one of the intermediate chambers immediately below the point where the upper end of the by-pass pipe is connected, which arrangement of pipes and cdnnections establishes a circulation of water downward through the upper portion of the heater and upward through the lower portion of said heater.

In testimony whereof I hereunto aiii): my signature in the presence of two witnesses. this 6th day of September, 1913.

JAMES J, ROI-IAN.

Witnesses:

M. 1. SMITH, M. A. HANDEL. 

